Method for manufacturing light-emitting device

ABSTRACT

A method for manufacturing a light-emitting device includes: providing a light-transmissive member comprising: a base portion, and a projecting portion on a first surface side of the base portion; providing a light-emitting element that has a main emitting surface and an electrode formation surface opposite to the main emitting surface; disposing the light-emitting element on the projecting portion of the light-transmissive member such that the main emitting surface of the light-emitting element faces an upper surface of the projecting portion of the light-transmissive member; and forming a light-reflective member that covers at least one of (i) lateral surfaces of the light-emitting element, and/or (ii) lateral surfaces of the projecting portion of the light-transmissive member.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/849,123, filed Dec. 20, 2017, which claims priority to JapanesePatent Application No. 2016-248528 filed on Dec. 21, 2016, JapanesePatent Application No. 2017-035611 filed on Feb. 28, 2017, and JapanesePatent Application No. 2017-237020 filed on Dec. 11, 2017, thedisclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference in theirentireties.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to a method for manufacturing alight-emitting device.

Light source devices in which light-emitting elements are incorporatedhave conventionally been proposed that can be suitably used asbacklights for apparatus such as mobile phones and digital cameras (forexample, Japanese Patent Publication No. 2004-235139). A linear lightsource device disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent ApplicationPublication No. 2004-235139 includes: a plurality of light-emittingelements arranged at predetermined intervals along the longitudinaldirection of a rectangular rod-shaped wiring board, and die-bondedthereto; reflectors arranged at both sides of each of the light emittingelements such that the reflectors and the light emitting elements arearranged alternately; and the opposing surfaces of the reflectors beinginclined such that the distance between the opposing surfaces increasestoward the opening of the reflector along the emission direction oflight from the light emitting element. This structure enables the wholedevice to be reduced in size and slimmed down and provides linear lightwith high luminance and only slight non-uniformity in luminance.

SUMMARY

However, in the manufacture of such a linear light source device asdisclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2004-235139, the more the light source device is reduced in size orslimmed down, the more difficult the manufacturing thereof becomes.

The present disclosure has been made in view of the above-mentionedsituation. One object of the present disclosure is to provide a methodfor easily manufacturing a small or slim light-emitting device.

In one embodiments, a method for manufacturing a light-emitting deviceincludes: providing a light-transmissive member which has a base portionand at least one projecting portion on a first surface side of the baseportion; providing at least one light-emitting element that has a mainemitting surface and an electrode formation surface opposite to the mainemitting surface; disposing the at least one light-emitting element onthe respective projecting portion of the light-transmissive member suchthat the main emitting surface of the light-emitting element faces anupper surface of the projecting portion of the light-transmissivemember; and forming a light-reflective member that covers at least oneof (i) lateral surfaces of the light-emitting element, and/or (ii)lateral surfaces of the projecting portion of the light-transmissivemember.

In another embodiment, a method for manufacturing a light-emittingdevice includes: providing a base member for a light-transmissivemember; providing at least one light-emitting element that has a mainemitting surface and an electrode formation surface opposite to the mainemitting surface; disposing the at least one light-emitting element onthe base member such that the main emitting surface of the at least onelight-emitting element faces a first surface of the base member; forminga light transmissive-member comprising a base portion and a projectingportion above the base portion by forming at least one depressed portionin the base member, such that the at least one light-emitting element isdisposed on the projecting portion; and forming a light-reflectivemember that covers lateral surfaces of the at least one light-emittingelement and lateral surfaces of the projecting portion of thelight-transmissive member.

By these methods, a small or slim light-emitting device can bemanufactured easily.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a schematic plan view of a base member for alight-transmissive member according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 1B is a schematic sectional view taken along the line A-A in FIG.1A.

FIG. 2A is a schematic plan view for illustrating a step in a method formanufacturing a light-emitting device according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2B is a schematic sectional view taken along the line B-B in FIG.2A.

FIG. 2C is an enlargement of a portion of a schematic sectional viewshown in FIG. 2B.

FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according to thefirst embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according to thefirst embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according to thefirst embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according to thefirst embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according to thefirst embodiment.

FIG. 8A is a schematic plan view for illustrating a step in the methodfor manufacturing the light-emitting device according to the firstembodiment.

FIG. 8B is a schematic sectional view taken along the line C-C in FIG.8A.

FIG. 9 is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according to thefirst embodiment.

FIG. 10A is a schematic perspective view of the light-emitting deviceaccording to the first embodiment.

FIG. 10B is a schematic sectional view of the light-emitting device inFIG. 10A.

FIG. 11A is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in amethod for manufacturing a light-emitting device according to a secondembodiment.

FIG. 11B is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according to thesecond embodiment.

FIG. 11C is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according to thesecond embodiment.

FIG. 11D is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according to thesecond embodiment.

FIG. 12A is a schematic perspective view of the light-emitting deviceaccording to the second embodiment.

FIG. 12B is a schematic sectional view of the light-emitting device inFIG. 12A.

FIG. 13A is a schematic perspective view of a light-emitting deviceaccording to Example 3.

FIG. 13B is a schematic perspective view of the light-emitting deviceaccording to Example 3.

FIG. 13C is a schematic plan view of the light-emitting device accordingto Example 3.

FIG. 13D is a schematic bottom view of the light-emitting deviceaccording to Example 3.

FIG. 13E is a schematic sectional view of the light-emitting deviceaccording to Example 3.

FIG. 14 is a schematic sectional view of a lighting apparatus employingthe light-emitting device according to Example 3.

FIG. 15A is a schematic perspective view of a light-emitting deviceaccording to Example 4.

FIG. 15B is a schematic sectional view of the light-emitting device inFIG. 15A.

FIG. 16A is a schematic plan view of a light-emitting element accordingto the embodiments.

FIG. 16B is a schematic bottom view of the light-emitting elementaccording to the embodiments.

FIG. 16C is a schematic sectional view of the light-emitting elementaccording to the embodiments.

FIG. 17A is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing a light-emitting device according to Variation1.

FIG. 17B is a schematic sectional view taken along the line D-D in FIG.17A.

FIG. 17C is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according toVariation 1.

FIG. 17D is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according toVariation 1.

FIG. 17E is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according toVariation 1.

FIG. 17F is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according toVariation 1.

FIG. 18 is a schematic sectional view for illustrating a step in themethod for manufacturing the light-emitting device according toVariation 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Certain embodiments of the invention are described below with referenceto the accompanying drawings Light-emitting devices described below areintended to embody the technical concepts of the present invention, butthe invention is not limited to the devices below unless specificallystated otherwise. Constitutions described with respect to one embodimentor example are applicable to other embodiments and examples. Magnitudes,aspect ratios, or positional relations of members illustrated in thedrawings may be exaggerated or omitted in order to clarify or facilitatethe descriptions.

In the present specification, a light-emitting device has thelight-extracting surface that has a longitudinal direction side (I.e., arelatively long side) and a width direction side (I.e., a relativelyshort side), and the term “slimming down” means reducing the length inthe width direction, and a “slim” light-emitting device means alight-emitting device having a short length in the width direction.

The light-extracting surface in the present specification is a surfaceof each member from which light is emitted when the resultinglight-emitting device emits light.

According to one embodiment, a method for manufacturing a light-emittingdevice includes: providing a light-transmissive member which has a baseportion and at least one projecting portion on a first surface side ofthe base portion; providing at least one light-emitting element that hasa main emitting surface and an electrode formation surface opposite tothe main emitting surface; disposing the at least one light-emittingelement on the respective projecting portion of the light-transmissivemember such that the main emitting surface of the light-emitting elementfaces an upper surface of the projecting portion of thelight-transmissive member; and forming a light-reflective member thatcovers at least one of lateral surfaces of the light-emitting elementand lateral surfaces of the projecting portion of the light-transmissivemember.

The precision of the position and shape of the emitting surface isenhanced by disposing the light-emitting element in this manner on theprojecting portion of the light-transmissive member that includes thebase portion and the projecting portion. Also, disposing thelight-emitting element on the projecting portion of thelight-transmissive member realizes precise alignment of thelight-transmissive member with the light-emitting element even in thecase where the width of the light-transmissive member to serve as theemitting surface is small. Forming the light-reflective member thatcovers the lateral surfaces of the projecting portion enhances theprecision of the positions and shapes of the emitting surface of thelight-emitting device and the light-reflective member that encloses theemitting surface. This realizes manufacturing a small or slimlight-emitting device.

According to another embodiment, a method for manufacturing alight-emitting device includes: providing a base member for alight-transmissive member; providing at least one light-emitting elementthat has a main emitting surface and an electrode formation surfaceopposite to the main emitting surface; disposing the at least onelight-emitting element such that the main emitting surface of the atleast one light-emitting element faces a first surface of thelight-transmissive member; forming at least one base portion and atleast one projecting portion above the base portion in the base memberfor the light-transmissive member, the projecting portion comprising atleast one portion on which the at least one light-emitting element isdisposed, by forming at least one depressed portion in the base memberfor the light-transmissive member; and forming a light-reflective memberthat covers lateral surfaces of the at least one light-emitting elementand lateral surfaces of the at least one projecting portion of thelight-transmissive member.

By forming the depressed portion around the light-emitting elementdisposed on the upper surface of the light-transmissive member, theprojecting portion and the light-reflective member can be formed in sucha manner as to cover the lateral surfaces of the projecting portion,thereby enabling enhancement of the precision of the positions andshapes of the emitting surface of the light-emitting device and thelight-reflective member that encloses the emitting surface is enhanced.Also, forming the depressed portion that defines the position of thelight-reflective member after disposing the light-emitting element onthe light-transmissive member enables precise alignment of thelight-emitting element with the light-reflective member while keepingthe width of the light-transmissive member to serve as the emittingsurface, small. This realizes manufacturing a small or slimlight-emitting device.

First Embodiment

FIG. 10A and FIG. 10B show a light-emitting device 100 manufactured by amanufacturing method in a first embodiment. The light-emitting device100 includes a light-emitting element 2 having the longitudinaldirection sides and the width direction sides in a plan view, alight-transmissive encapsulating member 1 having the longitudinaldirection sides and the width direction sides in a plan view, alight-transmissive adhesive 3 that bonds the light-emitting element 2 tothe light-transmissive encapsulating member 1, and a light-reflectivemember 4 that covers the lateral surfaces of the light-emitting element2, the light-transmissive adhesive 3, and the lateral surfaces of thelight-transmissive encapsulating member 1. The longitudinal directionsides of the light-emitting element 2 coincides with the longitudinaldirection sides of the light-transmissive encapsulating member 1.

The light-emitting device can be obtained by, for example, themanufacturing method including the following steps.

The method for manufacturing the light-emitting device 100 in thepresent embodiment is described in detail below.

1. Providing Light-Transmissive Member

A light-transmissive member 10 including a base portion 13 andprojecting portions 12 on a first surface side of the base portion 13 isprovided as shown in FIG. 2A, FIG. 2B, and FIG. 2C. FIG. 2C is anenlargement of a portion of a schematic cross-sectional view shown inFIG. 2B for clearly illustrating the base portion 13 and the projectingportions 12.

In the present embodiment, a surface of each of the projecting portions12 of the light-transmissive member that are finally exposed from thelight-reflective member serves as a light-emitting surface of thelight-emitting device 100. Thus, the light-transmissive member 10 in thelongitudinal direction and the width direction respectively have equallengths to lengths of the light-emitting device 100 in the longitudinaldirection and the width direction in a plan view. In the presentspecification, “equal length” or the substantially the same term meansthat approximately ±10% or less of tolerance is acceptable. That is, inthe present embodiment, the lengths of the the upper surface and a lowersurface of each of the protruding portions 12 of the light-transmissivemember in the longitudinal direction viewed from the top of theprotruding portions 12 can respectively have a tolerance withinapproximately ±10% or less of the lengths of the light-emitting surfaceof the light-emitting device 100 in the longitudinal direction.Similarly, the length of the upper surface and the lower surface of eachof the protruding portions 12 in the width direction viewed from the topof the protruding portions 12 can respectively have a tolerance withinapproximately ±10% or less of the lengths of the emitting surface of thelight-emitting device 100 in the longitudinal direction. In the presentembodiment, the lateral surfaces of the protruding portions can beinclined such that the light-emitting devices 100 each have a larger orsmaller light-emitting surface. In such a case, the lengths of each ofthe protruding portions 12 of the light-transmissive member in thelongitudinal and width directions viewed from the top may be equal to ornot equal to the lengths of the light-emitting surface of thelight-emitting device 100 in the longitudinal and width direction.Preferably, the protruding portions 12 in the present embodiment can beformed such that the length in the width direction of a surface on thelight-extracting surface side (i.e., lower surface of the protrudingportion 12) which faces the supporting member 50 is substantially equalto the length in the width direction of the light-emitting surface ofthe emitting device 100. In the present embodiment, the lateral surfacesof the protruding portions 12 may include a rough surface, and thelengths of the emitting surface of the light-emitting device 100, andthe lengths of the upper surface and the lower surface of the protrudingportions 12 in the longitudinal or width direction can be compared usingthe smallest, longest or average length so long as the same reference isused.

In the present embodiment, the light-transmissive member having thelongitudinal direction sides and the width direction sides in a planview and including the base portion and the projecting portions isprovided by disposing a base member 11 for the light-transmissive memberhaving a sheet shape on the supporting member 50 and removing part ofthe base member to a certain point in the thickness direction of thebase member to form the projecting portions 12 as described below.

The step of providing the light-transmissive member is described indetail below.

1-1. Shaping Base Member for Light-Transmissive Member

The base member 11 in a sheet shape for the light-transmissive member isfirst formed. The figures referred below show an exemplified structureof a base member 11 of a light-transmissive member including aphosphor-containing layer 11 a, in which at least one type of phosphoris contained, and phosphor-free layer 11 b, in which substantially nophosphor is contained.

The sheet-shaped base member 11 for the light-transmissive member can beformed in a substantially uniform thickness by, for example,compression-molding, transfer-molding, injection-molding, spraying,printing, potting, or electrophoretic deposition. The base member 11having a sheet shape can be formed with a material of liquid resin, andwhen necessary, one or more phosphors can be mixed with the liquid resinmaterial.

1-2. Disposing Base Member for Light-Transmissive Member on SupportingMember

Subsequently, the base member 11 for the light-transmissive memberhaving a sheet shape is disposed on the supporting member 50 as shown inFIG. 1A and FIG. 1B. In the present embodiment, the light-extractingsurface of the base member 11 for the light-transmissive member isattached to the supporting member having an adhesive layer 50 a on itsupper surface. For the supporting member 50, resin films, metal plates,resin plates, and ceramic plates can be used singly or in combination.Regardless of what material is used for the supporting member, thesupporting member 50 preferably has an adhesive layer 50 a, morepreferably an ultraviolet-curable (UV-curable) adhesive layer, on onesurface. Employing such an adhesive layer 50 a enables the supportingmember 50 to stably hold the base member 11 for the light-transmissivemember. In addition, the adhesive layer 50 a more preferably has heatresistance to withstand a thermal history including curing of resinthrough the following steps. The base member 11 for thelight-transmissive member may be disposed on the supporting member 50 byforming the base member 11 for the light-transmissive member on thesupporting member 50.

1-3. Forming Projecting Portion of Light-Transmissive Member

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B, part in a thicknessdirection of the base member 11 of the light transmissive member isremoved to have a groove shape while the base member 11 is disposed onthe support member 50 in order to form a plurality of projectingportions 12 each having the longitudinal direction sides and the widthdirection sides in a plan view. In the present embodiment, theprojecting portions 12 are formed in a four-by-five matrix, around whichremaining portions 11 c that remains after cutting the base member 11for the light-transmissive member are located. The projecting portions12 are connected to the remaining portions 11 c via a base portion 13.

The grooves 14, and thus projecting portions 12 of the base member 11for the light-transmissive member, can be formed by, for example,dicing, punching (e.g., machining using Thomson blade), ultrasonicmachining, or laser machining. Dicing is particularly preferable due toits good straightness described later in order to form the grooves 14and to achieve spacing between adjacent projecting portions 12 of thelight-transmissive member Particularly in the case where thelight-transmissive member contains a phosphor vulnerable to moisture(e.g., a KSF phosphor), a method using no water is preferable.Degradation of the light-transmissive member is thus reduced.

The formation of the projecting portions essentially demarcates theshape of the emitting surfaces, particularly the shapes of sides alongthe longitudinal direction in a plan view, of the light-emitting device100, the cutting is preferably performed by a method that achieves goodstraightness. The good straightness for forming the protruding portionsis also needed to define shapes of the sides of the protruding portionsin the width direction. In the case where such straightness cannot beachieved, a desired shape of the emitting surface of the light-emittingdevice 100 may not be obtained. Such variances in the shape of theprojecting portions 12 of the light-transmissive member makes itdifficult to control the thickness of the light-reflective member 4described later because the light-reflective member 4 covers the lateralsurfaces of the light-transmissive encapsulating members 1. Hence, theemission direction cannot be sufficiently controlled by thelight-reflective member 4. Properties of the light-emitting device 100,such as the luminance and light incidence efficiency on a light-guidingplate, may thus degrade. Particularly, in the case where a plurality oflight-emitting elements are disposed on each of the projection portionsas shown in a later described variation 1, the good straightness indicing is needed because the sides of the emitting surface in thelongitudinal direction defined by the sides of the protruding portionsin the longitudinal direction (indicated by L4 in FIG. 13C) becomelonger.

A required degree of linearity of the sides along the longitudinaldirection of one of the projecting portions 12 of the light-transmissivemember varies depending on the thickness of the light-reflective member4 covering the lateral surfaces of the light-transmissive encapsulatingmember 1. Particularly, in order to obtain a light-emitting device 100having a high-output while being slim, the ratio of the length in thewidth direction of the light-transmissive encapsulating member 1 (sidesL5 in FIG. 13C) that constitutes the emitting surface is needed to beincreased on the surface side that is configured with the light-emittingsurface and the surface of the light-reflective member 4 surrounding thelight-emitting surface, with respect to the thickness of thelight-reflective member 4 is needed to be reduced while ensuring thenecessary thickness. Hence, the projecting portions 12 of thelight-transmissive member are required to be formed by cutting with highlinearity across the entire length of the light-emitting device 100.Specifically, the linearity is preferably high enough to allow thelight-reflective member 4 to have a thickness of about 10 μm to about100 μm, preferably about 20 μm to about 50 μm, over the entire lateralsurfaces of the light-emitting device 100.

In the present specification, the statement that linearity of a memberis high means that the distance between an imaginary line that isparallel to a predetermined side of the member and passes through theinnermost point of the periphery of the member and the outermost pointof the periphery of the member is small.

Cutting with high straightness in the present specification means thatthe cutting can achieve high linearity.

The projecting portions can each have a rectangular, square, hexagonal,octagonal, circular, or elliptic shape or a shape similar to theabove-mentioned shape in a plan view.

The foregoing is an exemplification where the protruding portions 12 areobtained by forming the grooves in lattice shape. In the presentembodiment, however, the protruding portions 12 can be obtained byforming the grooves 14 in only one direction. That is, each of thegrooves 14 can be defined by only two facing sides of the lateralsurfaces of the intended light-transmissive encapsulating member 1. Theprotruding portions 14 may be formed by, for example, the grooves 14being parallel to each other on the plurality of base members 11 whicheach have a band shape and are away from each other, for example, suchthat the.

Forming the projecting portions 12 connected to one another via the baseportion 13 reduces the risk of deformation of the projecting portions12. The handleability in the manufacturing process of alight-transmissive member 10 is thus improved, thereby facilitating massproduction of the light-emitting device.

As such, the protruding portions 12 can be defined by the grooves 14formed by removing part of the base member 11 of the light-transmissivemember, whereas spaces, in which the light-reflective members 4 are tobe formed, can be provided on the lateral surfaces of thelight-transmissive encapsulating members 1. In forming the protrudingportions 12 of the light-transmissive member, the grooves can be formedwithout allowing the base portion 13 to remain at the bottom of thegrooves in order to obtain spaces in which the light-reflective member 4is to be formed while the adjacent protruding portions 12 are separateto each other. The protruding portions 12 formed by the grooves asmentioned above can provide the spaces in which the light-reflectivemember 4 is to be formed without transferring the light-transmissivemember or expanding the sheet as described later. This can be achievedeasily by a cutting method that generates cutting margins, such asdicing. The distance between the projecting portions 12 is sufficient solong as it is suitable for the thickness of the light-reflective member4 to be disposed and the method for cutting the light-reflective member4. The distance is preferably, for example, about 30 μm to about 300 μm,more preferably about 30 μm to about 200 μm. This structure makes thelight-emitting device 100 slim while providing a sufficient thickness ofthe light-reflective member 4.

The method for forming the projecting portions 12 of thelight-transmissive member can be appropriately selected other than themethods including the above-mentioned cutting. A shape including thebase portion 13 and the projecting portions 12 may be formed by, forexample, compression molding, transfer molding, injection molding,screen printing, or spraying.

A first surface on which the light-emitting element 2 is disposed ofeach of the projecting portions 12 of the light-transmissive member maybe different in shape from a second surface, which is to be the emittingsurface of the light-emitting device, and opposite to the first surface.For example, the first surface on which the light-emitting element 2 isdisposed may be smaller or larger than the second surface, which is tobe the emitting surface. The light-transmissive member having such ashape can be formed by, for example, using a V-shaped or invertedV-shaped blade to cut the base member 11 for the light-transmissivemember in the present embodiment.

2. Disposing Light-Emitting Element on Projecting Portion ofLight-Transmissive Member

Subsequently, the light-emitting element 2 is disposed on eachprojecting portion 12 of the light-transmissive member with thelight-transmissive adhesive 3 disposed therebetween such that the mainemitting surface of the light-emitting element 2 faces the upper surfaceof the projecting portion 12.

In the present specification, the surface of the projecting portion 12on which the light-emitting element 2 is disposed may be referred to asthe upper surface of the projecting portion 12.

In the present embodiment, it is preferable that each light-emittingelement 2 be disposed on the corresponding projecting portion 12 of thelight-transmissive member 10 with the light-transmissive member 10shaped and provided on the supporting member 50 being held by thesupporting member 50, in other words, without moving or transferring thelight-transmissive member 10 from the supporting member 50. Alight-transmissive member 10 containing resin, particularly a siliconeresin, as a base material is soft, and the projecting portion 12, whichconstitutes the emitting surface, of the light-transmissive member isformed into a narrow shape to provide a slim light-emitting device 100.Moving or transferring such a member is generally difficult. Inparticular, the projecting portion 12 of the light-transmissive memberbeing soft and narrow may have a possibility to be twisted or bentduring moving or transferring. In such a case, it is difficult tomaintain the linearity described above of the projecting portion 12 ofthe light-transmissive member. Hence, it is preferable to shape thelight-transmissive member 10 on the supporting member 50, and disposethe light-emitting element 2 on the projecting portion 12 of thelight-transmissive member with the light-transmissive member 10 beingheld by the same supporting member 50 without transferring or movingfrom the supporting member 50.

The projecting portion 12 of the light-transmissive member is connectedto the base portion 13 in the present embodiment, its shape iscomparatively stable. Hence, transferring from the supporting member 50to another supporting member may be performed before disposing thelight-emitting element 2 and after forming the projecting portions 12.

The step of disposing the light-emitting elements on the protrudingportions is described in detail below.

2-1. Applying Liquid Resin Material

In disposing of the light-emitting element 2 on the projecting portion12 of the light-transmissive member in the present embodiment, a liquidresin material 31 that is to be cured to constitute thelight-transmissive adhesive 3 is first applied on the upper surface ofeach projecting portion 12 of the light-transmissive member as shown inFIG. 3.

A method such as pin transfer, dispensing, and printing can be used forthe application. The liquid resin material 31 applied may be separatedinto a plurality of islands or disposed as a continuous line on oneprojecting portion 12 of the light-transmissive member.

The amount of application is only required to be large enough to bondthe light-emitting element 2 to the light-transmissive encapsulatingmember 1, and can be appropriately adjusted depending on the sizes andnumbers of the light-transmissive encapsulating members 1 andlight-emitting elements 2 and the required bonding strength. It ispreferable that the light-transmissive adhesive 3 be disposed on thelateral surfaces of the light-emitting element 2 in addition to the gapbetween the light-extracting surface of the light-emitting element 2 andthe light-transmissive encapsulating member 1. This structure allowslight from the lateral surfaces of the light-emitting element 2 to beextracted, thereby improving the light extraction efficiency of thelight-emitting device 100.

2-2. Disposing Light-Emitting Element

Subsequently, each light-emitting element 2 that has the main emittingsurface and an electrode formation surface opposite to the main emittingsurface is disposed on the liquid resin material 31 such that the mainemitting surface faces the light-transmissive member side as shown inFIG. 4. At this time, the longitudinal direction sides of thelight-emitting element (i.e., sides L7 in FIG. 16A) preferably coincideswith the longitudinal direction sides of the projecting portion 12 ofthe light-transmissive member.

In the disposing of the light-emitting element 2, positioning of theliquid resin material 31 to be the light-transmissive adhesive 3 and thelight-emitting element 2 is preferably performed at an edge of theprojecting portion 12 of the light-transmissive member in a plan view.For example, the ends of the sides along the longitudinal direction ofthe projecting portion 12 of the light-transmissive member preferablycoincide with ends of the light-transmissive adhesive 3. Allowing thelight-emitting element 2 to self-align along the sides along thelongitudinal direction of the projecting portion 12 in this way enablesthe light-emitting elements 2 to be easily and precisely disposed in arow on the narrow projecting portion 12.

The length in the width direction of the projecting portion 12 (i.e., L5in FIG. 2A) is preferably about 1 time to 2 times the length in thewidth direction of the light-emitting element 2 (i.e., L8 in FIG. 13A),more preferably about 1.2 to 1.5 times the length thereof. Thisstructure can make the light-emitting device 100 slim while obtainingthe self-alignment effect.

2-3. Curing Liquid Resin Material

Subsequently, the liquid resin material 31 is cured by heat orultraviolet light to bond the light-emitting elements 2 to theprojecting portions 12 of the light-transmissive member. At this time,the light-transmissive adhesive 3 is preferably formed into a shapebroadening toward the light-extracting surface side from the lowersurface, which is the surface opposite to the light-extracting surfaceof the light-emitting element 2, the light-extracting surface facing theprojecting portion 12 of the light-transmissive member. Thelight-emitting device 100 can thus exhibit a high light extractionefficiency.

3. Forming Light-Reflective Member

Subsequently, the light-reflective member 4 is formed to cover thelateral surfaces of the light-emitting elements 2, thelight-transmissive adhesive 3, and the lateral surfaces of theprojecting portions 12 of the light-transmissive member as shown in FIG.5 and FIG. 6. The light-reflective member 4 is preferably formed on thesame supporting member 50 as that used for disposing the light-emittingelements 2 described above. This use inhibits deformation of thelight-transmissive member 10 and enables the light-reflective member 4to be precisely formed even in the case of a linear light-emittingdevice 100 that is narrow in the width direction. In the presentembodiment, base member 41 for the light-reflective member integrallycovers all of the first surfaces of the base portion 13 of a pluralityof light-transmissive members bonded to the supporting member 50, thelateral surfaces of a plurality of projecting portions 12, thelight-emitting elements 2 respectively disposed on the projectingportions, and the light-transmissive adhesive 3.

The light-reflective member 4 can be formed by, for example, injectionmolding, printing, potting, molding with a mold, such as compressionmolding, transfer molding. In particular, compression molding andtransfer molding are most suitable because increasing the concentrationof fillers contained in resin of the light-reflective member 4 reducesits fluidity.

The light-reflective member 4 may cover the lateral surfaces of one ofthe projecting portions 12 of the light-transmissive member, the lateralsurfaces of one of the light-emitting elements 2 disposed on one of theprojecting portions 12, and one of the light-transmissive adhesives 3.

The light-reflective member 4 may be formed in a plurality ofinstallments. For example, it is possible that the base member 41 forthe light-reflective member covering the lateral surfaces of theprojecting portions 12 of the light-transmissive member is formed inadvance before disposing the light-emitting elements 2, and thelight-reflective member covering the lateral surfaces of thelight-emitting elements and the light-transmissive adhesive is formedafter disposing the light-emitting elements.

The light-reflective member 4 may cover the lower surfaces of thelight-emitting elements 2. The light-reflective member 4 may be formedsuch that a pair of electrodes 2 a and 2 b of each of the light-emittingelements 2 are exposed. Alternatively, the light-reflective member 4 maybe formed to cover the electrodes 2 a and 2 b as shown in FIG. 5 andthen removed by, for example, grinding to expose the electrodes as shownin FIG. 6.

In the present embodiment, a supporting member 15 is then removed asshown in FIG. 7.

5. Removing Base Portion of Light-Transmissive Member

In the present embodiment, the base portion 13 of the light-transmissivemember is then removed to expose the projecting portions 12 of thelight-transmissive member as shown in FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B. The removalcan be performed by polishing, grinding, cutting, punching (e.g.,machining using Thomson blade), ultrasonic machining, laser machining,or the like. Polishing or grinding is preferable because a comparativelybroad surface can be removed at a time and because a removal thicknesscan be precisely controlled.

Decrease in the linearity due to deformation of the light-transmissivemember 10 described above hardly matters because the projecting portions12 of the light-transmissive member are fixed with the base member 41for the light-reflective member. Hence, moving or transferring may beperformed at the time of the removal. For example, the base portion 13can be removed after transferring to another supporting member so thatthe emitting surface of the light-transmissive member 10 is exposed. Thelight-emitting device 100 can be thus stably manufactured.

When the base portion 13 of the light-transmissive member 10 is removed,part of the projecting portions 12 of the light-transmissive member andpart of the base member 41 for the light-reflective member may also beremoved. This removal reduces variances in the thicknesses of thelight-emitting devices and enables the light-emitting device 100 to bestably manufactured.

6. Separating Light-Emitting Device

In the present embodiment, the light-reflective member is then cut anddivided along lines between the projecting portions as shown in FIG. 9to provide a plurality of light-emitting devices 100 separated.Specifically, the base member 41 for the light-reflective member is cut,which integrally covering all of the projecting portions 12 of thelight-transmissive member, the light-emitting elements 2 respectivelydisposed on the projecting portions 12, and the light-transmissiveadhesive 3. This cutting can be performed by dicing, punching (e.g.,machining using Thomson blade), ultrasonic machining, laser machining,or the like.

In the separating, each projecting portion 12 of the light-transmissivemember may be cut along its width direction (i.e., a directionintersecting with the longitudinal direction). Accordingly,light-emitting devices 100 having various lengths can be manufactured.

The light-emitting devices 100 involved in the present embodiment can bethus obtained.

Variation of First Embodiment (herein after referred to Variation 1)

The light-emitting device 100 according to the first embodiment has astructure in which of the single light-emitting element 2 is disposed onthe single protruding portion 12, however, a light-emitting device 100 aaccording to Variation 1 has a structure in which a plurality oflight-emitting elements 2 are disposed on single protruding portion 12.A light-emitting device 100 a according to Variation 1 of the firstembodiment is described below. A method for manufacturing thelight-emitting device in which two of the light-emitting elements 2 aredisposed on the single protrusion portion 12 are described below, withreference to FIGS. 17A through 17F. The case where more than two of thelight-emitting elements 2 are disposed on the single protruding portion12 are also described with reference to FIG. 13A through 13E, asnecessary.

In the manufacturing method in Variation 1, the base member 11 of thelight-transmissive member which is formed in a sheet shape, is disposedon the supporting member 50 in the same or similar manner as the firstembodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. The plurality of protrudingportion 12 are formed by creating the plurality of grooves 14 formed onthe base member 11 in the same or similar manner as the firstembodiment, as shown in FIGS. 17A and 18B. In Variation 1, theprotruding portions 12 are each formed in such a manner as to beapproximately twice the length of one of the protruding portions 12 inthe longitudinal direction of the first embodiment as shown in, forexample, FIG. 17A.

The protruding portions 12 are formed in matrix of 2 rows×5 columns inVariation 1 as shown in FIG. 17. In the area around the protrudingportions 12 formed in the 2 rows×5 columns matrix, remaining portions 11c are located in the same or similar manner as the first embodiment.Regions of the base portion 13 respectively connect between theprotruding portions 12 and the remaining portions 11 c.

The protruding portion 12 in the longitudinal direction in Variation 1has a length longer than the length of the protruding portion 12 in thelongitudinal direction in the first embodiment, whereas the grooves 14for defining the protruding portions 12 are preferably formed by dicingdue to its good straightness. In the case where more than two of thelight-emitting elements 2 are disposed on each of the protrudingportions 12, good straightness is especially needed, as shown in FIGS.13A through 13E. Forming the grooves with good straightness can realizethin light-emitting devices in which each of light emission surfaces islong in the longitudinal direction (i.e., L4 shown in 13C) as shown inFIGS. 13A through 13E.

For a light-emitting device in which the light emitting surface has alength several times as much (i.e., multiplication of an integer greaterthan 2) the length of the emitting surface of the light-emitting elementin the longitudinal direction, as shown in FIGS. 13A through 13E or thelike, the thickness of the light-reflective member 4 is preferablythinned as much as possible while maintaining the needed minimumthickness. Specifically, the light-reflective member 4 is preferablyformed over the entire lateral surfaces of the light-emitting device 100in a thickness of about 10 μm to about 100 more preferably about 20 μmto about 50 In the case of manufacturing a light-emitting device inwhich a emitting surface is long in the longitudinal direction as shownin FIGS. 13A through 13E, the grooves 14 each having a band shape whichhas longer sides in one direction by forming the grooves 14 in only onedirection to define the protruding portions 12.

Liquid resin material which is used to fix the light-emitting elements 2to predetermined positions, is applied. In Variation 1, the liquid resinmaterial 31 is applied at two separated position in the longitudinaldirection on the surface of each of the protruding portions 12, as shownin, for example, FIG. 17C.

In the light-emitting device 100 a according to Variation 1, preferably,light-transmissive adhesives 3 respectively exists between the pluralityof adjacent light-emitting elements 2 in a continuous manner, as shownin FIG. 13E. After disposing the light-emitting elements in this manner,the liquid resin material 31 can be applied at separated severalportions in the longitudinal direction, in order to allow thelight-transmissive adhesives 3 to achieve connection between the laterasurfaces of the adjacent light-emitting elements 2. In such a case, theamount of the liquid resin material applied is adjusted such thatoverrun of the light-transmissive adhesives 3 between the lateralsurfaces of the adjacent light-emitting elements 2 connect each other bydisposing and pressurizing the light-emitting elements 2. Instead ofseparately forming the liquid resin material 31 on several positions ofeach of the protruding portions 12, the liquid resin material 31 may becontinuously disposed in the longitudinal direction, and light-emittingelements 2 may be disposed on the continuously disposed liquid resinmaterial 31 at the predetermined intervals. With the structure that thelateral surfaces of the adjacent light-emitting elements 2 are connectedwith the light-transmissive adhesive 3, light emitted from thelight-emitting elements 2 can be uniform inside the light-transmissiveadhesive 3. Hence, non-uniformity of the light form the light-emittingelements 2 can be mitigated.

The light-emitting elements 2 are disposed on the liquid resin material31 as shown in FIG. 17D. The light-emitting elements 2 are disposed suchthat the main emitting surface thereof face the light-transmissivemember. In this course, the center line of the sides of thelight-emitting elements in the longitudinal direction coincide with thecenter line of the sides of the protruding portions of thelight-transmissive member in the longitudinal direction. In the casewhere a plurality of light-emitting elements 2 are used, the intervalsbetween the light-emitting elements can be about 10 μm to about 1,000μm, preferably, for example, 200 μm to 800 μm, more preferably about 500μm. Also, the intervals are preferably about 0.5 times to about 1 time alength L7 in the longitudinal direction of the light-emitting element 2shown in FIG. 16A. Setting intervals 51 between the light-emittingelements to about 0.5 times to about 1 time the length L7 in thelongitudinal direction of the light-emitting element as described abovecan reduce the number of the light-emitting elements 2 mounted in onelight-emitting device 100. This reduction facilitates manufacture of along light-emitting device as shown in FIG. 13A through FIG. 13E andcuts the cost of materials.

The liquid resin material is cured, and thereafter, the light-reflectivemember is formed. In Variation 1, base members 41 of thelight-reflective members are formed in the grooves 14, and formedbetween the adjacent light-emitting elements 2 on the protrudingportions 12, as shown in FIG. 17E. The base members 41 oflight-reflective member are formed in such a manner as to cover thelateral surfaces between the adjacent light-emitting elements 2 and thelight-transmissive adhesive 3 both disposed on each of the protrudingportions 12. The base member 41 of the light-reflective member are alsoformed in the grooves 14 in such a manner as to cover the lateralsurfaces of the protruding portions 12 in addition to the lateralsurfaces of the light-emitting elements 2 and the light-transmissiveadhesive 3.

In FIG. 17E, the base member 41 of the light-reflective member formedsuch that each of pairs of electrodes 2 a and 2 b of the light-emittingelements 2 is exposed. The base member 41 of light-reflective membermay, however, embed the electrodes 2 a and 2 b, thereafter, may beground to expose the electrodes 2 a and 2 b, in the same or similarmanner as the first embodiment.

Also in the same or similar manner as the first embodiment, the basemember of the light-transmissive member is removed after removing thesupporting member to separate into the individual light-emittingdevices. The separation may be performed by cutting the light-reflectivemember positioned in the grooves 14 along the center lines of thegrooves 14, as shown in FIG. 17. In the above description, thelight-reflective member before the separation is referred to as the“base member 41 of the light-reflective member”, and thelight-reflective member after the separation is referred to as the“light-reflective member 4” accompanying the reference numeral of 4.

As such, the light-emitting devices 100 a according to Variation 1 inwhich the plurality of light-emitting elements 2 are disposed on thesingle protruding portions 12, are manufactured.

Second Embodiment

In the present embodiment, light-emitting elements 202 are disposed on abase member 211 for a light-transmissive member as shown in FIG. 11A,FIG. 11B, and FIG. 11C, and then part of the base member 211 for thelight-transmissive member is removed such that depressed portions 214are formed around the light-emitting elements 2 as shown in FIG. 11D toform projecting portions 212. A slim light-emitting device 200 as shownin FIG. 12A and FIG. 12B can be manufactured also with alight-transmissive member 210 formed in this manner. The other steps canbe performed in the manner the same as or similar to in the firstembodiment.

The depressed portions 214 can be formed in substantially the same orsimilar manner as the forming of the projecting portions 12 in the firstembodiment. In the forming of the depressed portions 214, part of theedge portions of a light-transmissive adhesive 213 which bonds thelight-emitting elements 202 to the base member 211 for thelight-transmissive member, may be removed. Accordingly, the small andslim light-emitting device 200 can be manufactured.

Variation of Second Embodiment (Herein after Referred to as Variation 2)

In the light-emitting device 200 of the second embodiment, the singlelight-emitting elements 202 is disposed on the single protruding portion212. In a light-emitting device 200 a of Variation 2, however, aplurality of light-emitting elements 202 are disposed on a singleprotruding portion 212. Specifically, in the light-emitting device 200 aof Variation 2, the depressed portions 214 are formed in such a manneras to include the plurality of light-emitting elements 202 on the singleprotruding portion 212 (2 light emitting elements in FIG. 18), as shownin FIG. 18. Other than the position formed the depressed portions 214,the light-emitting devices 200 a of Variation 2 are manufactured in thesame or similar manner as to the second embodiment.

Materials suitable for constituent members of the light-emitting devices100 and 200 in the embodiments are described below.

Light-Transmissive Members 10 and 210

A light-transmissive resin, glass, or the like can be used as the basematerial of the light-transmissive member 10 or 210. A very narrow andlong light-emitting device 300 as shown in FIG. 13A to FIG. 13E may havevery low strength against bending stress in the manufacturing process ofthe light-emitting device and in the assembly process of a lightingapparatus (for example, a backlight apparatus 390 as shown in FIG. 14)employing the light-emitting device. Hence, in the case where a fragilelight-transmissive member composed of an inorganic substance, such asglass, is used, the light-transmissive member may be easily damaged bythe force applied to a light-transmissive member 1 in the manufacturingprocess of the light-emitting device 300. To inhibit or prevent thisdamage, an organic substance, particularly a somewhat pliable orflexible resin, is preferably used as the base material.

Examples of the resin include silicone resins, modified silicone resins,metamorphic silicone resins, epoxy resins, phenolic resins,polycarbonate resins, acrylic resins, TPX, polynorbornene resins, andhybrid resins each containing one or more of the above-mentioned resins.Silicone resins and epoxy resins are preferable among these resins, andparticularly, silicone resins is preferable due to their good resistanceto light and heat.

Using glass or a sintered body of a phosphor as the light-transmissivemember can reduce deterioration of the light-transmissive member,thereby enabling enhancement of reliability of the light-emittingdevice. Such a light-emitting device can be suitably used for, forexample, a light source for a headlight for a vehicle.

The light-transmissive member preferably contains at least one phosphor.This structure enables light-emitting devices that emit various colorsof light, particularly white light, through wavelength conversion oflight emitted from light-emitting elements to be provided. Phosphorsknown in the art can be used. Examples of the phosphors includecerium-activated yttrium-aluminum-garnet (YAG) based phosphors,cerium-activated lutetium-aluminum-garnet (LAG) based phosphors,europium- and/or chromium-activated nitrogen-containing calciumaluminosilicate (CaO—Al₂O₃—SiO₂) based phosphors, europium-activatedsilicate ((Sr,Ba)₂SiO₄) based phosphors, β-SiAlON phosphors, KSF basedphosphors (K₂SiF₆:Mn), and semiconductor particles called quantum-dotphosphors. This can realize a light-emitting device that emits mixedlight (e.g., white light) of primary light and secondary light havingvisible wavelengths, or a light-emitting device that emits visiblesecondary light through excitation by ultraviolet primary light. In thecase where the light-emitting device is used for a backlight for aliquid-crystal display, it is preferable to use a phosphor (e.g., a KSFbased phosphor) that emits red light and a phosphor (e.g., a β-SiAlONphosphor) that emits green light through excitation by blue lightemitted from the light-emitting elements. This structure expands thecolor reproduction range of a display employing the light-emittingdevice 100. In the case where the light-transmissive member contains aphosphor that is vulnerable to moisture or external environments, alayer free of phosphors can be positioned more closely to the emittingsurface than a portion containing a the phosphor that is vulnerable tomoisture or external environment, thereby enabling protection of thephosphor that is vulnerable to moisture or the like. Example of thephosphor that is vulnerable to moisture or external environment is KSFbased phosphor.

The location of the phosphor is not limited to the inside of thelight-transmissive member 10 or 210, and the phosphor may be located invarious positions or members in the light-emitting device. For example,a phosphor layer may be applied or bonded to a phosphor-free layer thatcontains substantially no phosphor particles in the light-transmissivemember 10 or 210. The phosphor can be contained in thelight-transmissive adhesive 3.

The light-transmissive member 10 or 210 may further contain a filler,such as diffusing agents and colorants. Examples of the filler includesilica, titanium oxide, zirconium oxide, magnesium oxide, magnesiumcarbonate, magnesium hydroxide, calcium carbonate, calcium hydroxide,calcium silicate, zinc oxide, barium titanate, aluminum oxide, ironoxide, chromium oxide, manganese oxide, glass, carbon black, crystalsand sintered bodies of phosphors, and sintered bodies of mixtures ofphosphors and inorganic binders. The refractive index of the filler maybe optionally adjusted. The refractive index is, for example, 1.8 ormore, preferably 2 or more to efficiently scatter light and provide highlight extraction efficiency, more preferably 2.5 or more. Among thesematerials, titanium oxide is preferable because it is comparativelystable against moisture and the like, and has a high refractive indexand a good thermal conductivity.

Particles of the filler can be crushed, spherical, hollow, or porousshape. The average particle diameter (i.e., median particle diameter) ispreferably about 0.08 μm to about 10 μm to provide efficientlight-scattering effects. The amount of the filler is preferably, forexample, about 10 wt % to about 60 wt % of the weight of thelight-transmissive member 10.

The light-transmissive member 10 or 210 includes the base portion 13 or213 of the light-transmissive member and the projecting portions 12 or212 of the light-transmissive member.

The size of the base member 11 for the light-transmissive member can bedetermined appropriately depending on manufacturing apparatuses and thesize of the projecting portions 12 or 212 of the light-transmissivemember.

The size of the projecting portions 212 of the light-transmissive membercan be determined appropriately depending on the size of thelight-emitting device 100 or 200.

For example, the length L4 in the longitudinal direction indicated inFIG. 13C can be about 1 time to 1,000 times, 50 times to 500 times, or100 times to 450 times the length L5 in the width direction. By themethod for manufacturing a light-emitting device in the presentembodiment, the manufacture is easily performed even in the case wheresuch a light-transmissive member having a length in the longitudinaldirection much longer than its length in the width direction is used.Also, using a light-emitting device having such a narrow emittingsurface facilitates manufacture of a lighting apparatus (e.g., backlightapparatus) compared with the case where a lot of light-emitting devicesare disposed.

Specifically, the length L4 in the longitudinal direction indicated inFIG. 13C can be about 2.5 cm to about 13.6 cm or about 4 cm to about 10cm. It is thus sufficient for a backlight apparatus to include only onelight-emitting device disposed, so that disposing of the light-emittingdevice and manufacture of the backlight apparatus are easily performed.

Specifically, the length L5 in the width direction indicated in FIG. 13Ccan be about 200 μm to about 400 μm, more preferably about 200 μm toabout 300 μm. The slim light-emitting device 100 or about 200 is thusmanufactured.

The thickness of the light-transmissive member 10 or 210 affects theheight of the light-emitting device (i.e., L3 in FIG. 13A), but reducingthe thickness increases the probability of breakage and limits theamount of phosphors contained. Hence, the thickness is selectedappropriately. The thickness is preferably about 10 μm to about 300 μm,more preferably about 30 μm to about 200 μm.

The light-transmissive encapsulating member 1 or 201 or the base member11 or 211 for the light-transmissive member may be a single layer or mayhave a layered structure configured with a plurality of layers asappropriate as shown in, for example, FIG. 2B. For example, a secondlayer that is a phosphor-free layer 11 b or 211 b containingsubstantially no phosphor particles may be disposed on a first layer 11a or 211 a that is a phosphor-containing layer. Alternatively, aplurality of layers containing different types of phosphors may belayered. For example, a first layer containing a first phosphor thatemits green light and a second layer containing a second phosphor thatemits red light are formed separately and joined to provide atwo-layered base member 11 for the light-transmissive member.Alternatively, the two-layered base member 11 for the light-transmissivemember can be provided by spraying or the like, by forming the firstlayer and then forming the second layer on the first layer. Also, aphosphor-containing portion containing at least one type of phosphor anda phosphor-free portion containing substantially no phosphor particlesmay be layered as shown in FIG. 1B. Such a light-transmissive member canbe formed by, for example, joining a plurality of sheets formedseparately. A three-layered light-transmissive member may be formed byjoining two phosphor layers each containing phosphor different from eachother and a layer, which is the phosphor-free portion, containingsubstantially no phosphor particles.

In the case where the phosphor used in the light-emitting device easilydegrades due to effects of environments such as moisture, thephosphor-free portion containing substantially no phosphor particles ispreferably disposed on the light-extracting surface side of thephosphor-containing portion of the light-transmissive encapsulatingmember 1. This structure can reduce a probability that the outside airis in contact to the phosphor, thereby inhibiting degradation of thephosphor. Also, a layer containing a filler, such as diffusing agentsand colorants, may be disposed on a portion on the light-extractingsurface side of the light-transmissive encapsulating member. Disposingsuch a layer containing a filler can improve color non-uniformity andweaken the adhesiveness of the light-emitting device. In the case ofusing a filler having a higher thermal conductivity than the basematerial of the light-transmissive encapsulating member, the thermalconductivity of the light-emitting device is improved, therebyincreasing the reliability thereof.

Examples of the filler include silica, titanium oxide, zirconium oxide,magnesium oxide, magnesium carbonate, magnesium hydroxide, calciumcarbonate, calcium hydroxide, calcium silicate, zinc oxide, bariumtitanate, aluminum oxide, iron oxide, chromium oxide, manganese oxide,glass, carbon black, crystals and sintered bodies of phosphors, andsintered bodies of mixtures of phosphors and inorganic binders. Amaterial having a high refractive index is preferably selected for thefiller. The refractive index is, for example, 1.8 or more, preferably 2or more in order to efficiently scatter light and provide high lightextraction efficiency, more preferably 2.5 or more. Among thesematerials titanium, oxide is particularly preferable because it iscomparatively stable against moisture and the like and has a highrefractive index and a good thermal conductivity. The filler particlescan be crushed, spherical, hollow, or porous shape. The average diameter(i.e., median diameter) of the particles is preferably about 0.08 μm toabout 10 μm to provide highly efficient light-scattering effects. Theamount of the filler is preferably, for example, about 10 wt % to about60 wt % of the weight of the light-transmissive member.

In the case where the light-transmissive member 10 or 210 is formed of aliquid material containing a liquid resin and phosphor particles, thelight-transmissive member 10 or 210 is preferably mixed with fineparticles of at least one filler such as Aerosil. This structure impartsa thixotropic property to the material for the light-transmissive member10 or 210 to inhibit settling of the phosphor particles, so that thebase member 11 for the light-transmissive member in which the phosphorparticles are uniformly dispersed is formed.

Light-Emitting Elements 2 and 202

The light-emitting elements 2 or 202 are disposed on the projectingportions 1 of the light-transmissive member.

The light-emitting elements 2 or 202 each have the main emitting surfaceand the electrode formation surface opposite to the main emittingsurface.

The size, shape, and emission wavelength of the light-emitting elements2 or 202 can be appropriately selected. In the case where a plurality oflight-emitting elements 2 are incorporated in one light-emitting device100 or 200, their arrangement may be irregular or may be regular, suchas a matrix. To reduce non-uniformity in emission intensity and color,the light-emitting elements are preferably arranged regularly atsubstantially equal intervals as shown in FIG. 13E.

In the case where a plurality of light-emitting elements 302 aredisposed in one light-emitting device 300, their connection may be anyof series, parallel, series-parallel, or parallel-series connections.The light-emitting device may be manufactured such that a plurality oflight-emitting elements 2 are electrically separated as shown in FIG.13B, and then electrically connected via a mounting board 60 on whichthe light-emitting device 300 is disposed. The light-emitting elements302 can be connected in series by disposing an electrically-conductivemetal film on the surface of the light-reflective member to connectpositive and negative electrodes 302 a and 302 b of respectivelight-emitting elements 302.

The length L7, the longitudinal direction side of the light-emittingelement, shown in FIG. 16A can be, for example, about 200 μm to about1,500 μm. The length L7 is preferably about 500 μm to about 1,200 μm,more preferably about 700 μm to about 1,100 μm.

The length L8, the width direction side of the light-emitting element 2,shown in FIG. 16A can be, for example, about 50 μm to about 400 μm. Thelength L8 is preferably about 100 μm to about 300 μm. This structureenables the light-emitting element to be disposed in the slimlight-emitting device 100.

By using light-emitting elements 2 each having a length L7 in thelongitudinal direction about three times, preferably five times or more,the length L8 in the width direction, increase in the number of thelight-emitting elements 2 used can be inhibit, and facilitatesmanufacture, even in the case where a light-emitting device 100 having along length L1 in the longitudinal direction is manufactured. Usinglight-emitting elements 2 each having a length L7 in the longitudinaldirection about three to six times the length L8 in the width directionreduces a possibility of breakage of the light-emitting elements 2during manufacture, thereby facilitating manufacture of thelight-emitting device 100.

A thickness L9 of the light-emitting element 2 indicated in FIG. 16C ispreferably, for example, about 80 μm to about 200 μm. This structureallows the width of a frame of a backlight apparatus to be reduced inthe case where, for example, the light-emitting device 100 isincorporated into the backlight apparatus such that the end surface of alight-guiding plate from which light is incident, is parallel to theemitting surface.

As shown in FIG. 16C, the light-emitting element 2 used in thelight-emitting device 100 includes a semiconductor layered body 2 cincluding a first semiconductor layer (e.g., an n-type semiconductorlayer), a light-emitting layer, and a second semiconductor layer (e.g.,a p-type semiconductor layer) layered in this order. The light-emittingelement 2 also includes the first electrode 2 a electrically connectedto the first semiconductor layer, and the second electrode 2 belectrically connected to the second semiconductor layer, both on thesame surface that is the lower surface (e.g., the surface close to thesecond semiconductor layer). The semiconductor layered body 2 c isusually layered on a substrate 2 d, but it does not matter whether thelight-emitting element 2 includes the substrate 2 d or not.

The types and materials of the first semiconductor layer, thelight-emitting layer, and the second semiconductor layer are not limitedto particular types or materials, and their examples include varioussemiconductors such as group III-V compound semiconductors and groupII-VI compound semiconductors. Specific examples include nitridesemiconductor materials represented by In_(X)Al_(Y)Ga_(1−X−Y) (0≤X, 0≤Y,X+Y≤1), such as InN, AlN, GaN, InGaN, AlGaN, and InGaAlN. Each layer canemploy a thickness and layer structure known in the art.

Examples of the substrate 2 d include growth substrates on whichsemiconductor layers can be epitaxially grown. Examples of the materialfor such a substrate 2 d include insulating substrates, such as sapphire(Al₂O₃) and spinel (MgAl₂O₄) substrates, and the above-mentionednitride-based semiconductor substrates. In the case where alight-transmissive substrate 2 d, such as a sapphire substrate, is usedas the growth substrate for the semiconductor layers, the substrate 2 dcan be used in the light-emitting device without being removed from thesemiconductor layered body.

The substrate 2 d may have a plurality of projecting portions orirregularities on its surface. The substrate 2 d may have an off angleof about 0 to 10° to a predetermined crystal plane, such as the C-planeand the A-plane.

A semiconductor layer such as an intermediate layer, a buffer layer, andan underlying layer or an insulating layer may be disposed between thesubstrate 2 d and the first semiconductor layer.

The shape of the semiconductor layered body 2 c in a plan view is notlimited to particular shapes and is preferably a quadrilateral or ashape similar to a quadrilateral. The size of the semiconductor layeredbody 2 c in a plan view can be adjusted appropriately depending on thesize of the light-emitting element 2 in a plan view.

First Electrodes 2 a and 202 a and Second Electrodes 2 b and 202 b

The first electrode 2 a and the second electrode 2 b are disposed on alower surface 2 y side of the light-emitting element 2. The first andsecond electrodes 2 a and 2 b are formed preferably on the same surfaceof the semiconductor layered body 2 c, in the case where the substrate 2d exists, on the surface opposite to the substrate 2 d. This structureenables flip-chip mounting, in which positive and negative connectionterminals of the mounting board 60 are bonded to the first electrode 2 aand the second electrode 2 b of the light-emitting element 2 such thatthe terminals face the electrodes.

The first electrode 2 a and the second electrode 2 b can be formed of,for example, single-layer films or multi-layer films composed of metals,such as Au, Pt, Pd, Rh, Ni, W, Mo, Cr, and Ti, or their alloys. Specificexamples include layered films including layers in certain orders, suchas Ti/Rh/Au, W/Pt/Au, Rh/Pt/Au, W/Pt/Au, Ni/Pt/Au, and Ti/Rh in theorder from the semiconductor layer side. Any thickness of a film used inthe art may be employed.

In layers of the first electrode 2 a and the second electrode 2 b, alayer formed with a material having higher reflectance with respect tolight emitted from the light emitting layer than reflectance of theother layers therein is preferably disposed near side of the firstsemiconductor layer and the second semiconductor layer.

Examples of the material that has a higher reflectance include layerscontaining silver, silver alloys, or aluminum. Silver alloys known inthe art may be used. The thickness of each material layer is not limitedto particular values. A thickness large enough to effectively reflectlight emitted from the light-emitting element 2 may be employed, whichis, for example, about 20 nm to about 1 μm. It is more preferable tohave a larger contact area between the material layer and the first orsecond semiconductor layer.

In the case where silver or a silver alloy is used, a cover layer thatcovers surface thereof (preferably the upper surface and end surfaces)is preferably formed to inhibit or prevent silver migration. For such acover layer, a layer composed of a metal or an alloy commonly used as anelectrically conductive material may be used. Examples of the layerinclude single layers and multi-layered layers containing metals such asaluminum, copper, and nickel. AlCu is preferable among such metals. Thethickness of the cover layer is, for example, about some hundreds ofnanometers to some micrometers to effectively inhibit or prevent silvermigration.

As long as the first electrode 2 a and the second electrode 2 b areelectrically connected respectively to the first semiconductor layer andthe second semiconductor layer, the surfaces of the electrodes may notentirely have contact with the semiconductor layers.

Also, part of the first electrode 2 a may not be located on/above thefirst semiconductor layer, and/or part of the second electrode 2 b maynot be located on/above the second semiconductor layer. That is, forexample, the first electrode 2 a may be disposed on the secondsemiconductor layer via an insulating film or the like disposedtherebetween, or the second electrode 2 b may be disposed on the firstsemiconductor layer via an insulating film or the like disposedtherebetween. This structure enables the shape of the first electrode 2a or the second electrode 2 b to be easily changed, thereby facilitatingmounting of the light-emitting device 100 or 200.

The insulating film here is not limited to particular films and may beany single-layer film or multi-layer film used in the art. Using theinsulating film or the like allows the first electrode 2 a and thesecond electrode 2 b to have optional sizes and to be located atoptional positions regardless of the plane area(s) of the firstsemiconductor layer and/or the second semiconductor layer.

In this case, the first electrode 2 a and the second electrode 2 bpreferably have substantially the same planar shape of at least thesurfaces to be contact to the mounting board 60. The first electrode 2 aand the second electrode 2 b preferably face each other across thecentral portion of the semiconductor layered body 2 c as shown in FIG.13B.

First main surfaces of the first electrode 2 a and the second electrodeb (i.e., surfaces opposite to the semiconductor layer) may have a heightdifference but are preferably substantially flat. The term “flat” heremeans that the height from a second main surface of the semiconductorlayered body 2 c (i.e., surface opposite to a first main surface) to thefirst main surface of the first electrode 2 a is substantially the sameas the height from the second main surface of the semiconductor layeredbody 2 c to the first main surface of the second electrode 2 b. The term“substantially the same” here means that about ±10% tolerance of theheight of the semiconductor layered body 2 c are acceptable.

With the first surfaces of the first electrode 2 a and the secondelectrode 2 b whose first surfaces are substantially flat as describedabove, that is, whose first surfaces are in substantially the sameplane, bonding of the light-emitting device to the mounting board 60 orthe like can be readily performed as shown in FIG. 14. Theabove-mentioned first electrode 2 a and second electrode 2 b can beformed by, for example, disposing metal films on the electrodes byplating and then performing polishing or cutting to make the surfacesflat.

Distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) layers or the like may be disposedbetween the first electrode 2 a and the first semiconductor layer andbetween the second electrode 2 b and the second semiconductor layer tothe extent that their electrical connections are not impaired. A DBRhas, for example, a multilayer structure in which low-refractive-indexlayers and high-refractive-index layers are layered on an underlyinglayer optionally composed of an oxide film. The DBR selectively reflectslight with predetermined wavelengths.

Specifically, films having various refractive indices and thicknesseswhich are to reflect a quarter of wavelength of wavelength, arealternately layered, thereby enabling reflection at the predeterminedwavelength in a highly efficient manner. The films can contain materialssuch as oxides and nitrides of at least one element selected from thegroup consisting of Si, Ti, Zr, Nb, Ta, and Al.

Light-Transmissive Adhesives 3 and 203

The light-transmissive adhesive 3 or 203 is preferably used to disposeand bond the light-emitting element 2 on the light-transmissive member10 or 210.

For the light-transmissive adhesive 3 or 203, it is preferable to use alight-transmissive resin, and a liquid material being curable to achievebonding. Particularly preferable examples of such a light-transmissiveresin include thermosetting resins, such as silicone resins, modifiedsilicone resins, epoxy resins, and phenolic resins. Thelight-transmissive adhesive 3 or 203 is in contact with thelight-transmissive member 1 and the light-extracting surface and lateralsurfaces of the light-emitting element 2, thereby being likely to beaffected by heat generated by the light-emitting element 2 while thelight-emitting element 2 is lighting up. Thermosetting resins aresuitably used for the light-transmissive adhesive 3 due to its heatresistant. The light-transmissive adhesive 3 or 203 preferably has ahighly light transmittance.

The light-transmissive adhesive 3 or 203 may contain an additive thatscatters light. Such an additive makes light emitted between thelight-emitting elements 2 uniform within the light-transmissive adhesive3. A filler, such as Aerosil, may be added to adjust the refractiveindex of the light-transmissive adhesive or the viscosity of thelight-transmissive member before being cured (liquid resin material 31or 231). This adjustment can inhibit or prevent the light-transmissiveadhesive 3 or 203 from excessively flowing and spreading, and allows thelight-emitting element 2 or 202 to be stably disposed on the projectingportion 12 or 212 of the light-transmissive member.

Light-Emitting Devices 100 and 200

The size of the emitting surface of the light-emitting device 100 or 200is, for example, substantially equal to the planar shape of theabove-mentioned light-transmissive encapsulating member 1 or 201, butthe light-emitting device 100 or 200 is larger than thelight-transmissive encapsulating member 1 or 201 by the size of thelight-reflective member 4 or 204 disposed around the light-transmissiveencapsulating member 1 or 201.

Preferably, the height of the light-emitting device 100 or 200 (i.e., L3in FIG. 13A) is, for example, about 300 μm to about 700 μm. Thisstructure allows the width of a frame of a backlight apparatus to bereduced in the case where, for example, the light-emitting device isincorporated into the backlight apparatus such that the light incidentend surface of a light-guiding plate is parallel to the emittingsurface. For the same reason, portions of the electrodes 302 a and 302 bof the light-emitting element exposed on the outer surface of thelight-emitting device 300 as shown in FIG. 13B for example, arepreferably used as electrodes for mounting the light-emitting device300. Also, a thin metal layer is preferably disposed across the surfacesof the electrodes 302 a and 302 b of the light-emitting element 302 andthe surface of the light-reflective member 304. This structure makes thelight-emitting device small or slim.

Example 1

A silicone resin, a YAG:Ce phosphor, and about 2 wt % of Aerosilrelative to the resin are first mixed in a centrifugal defoaming mixer.

The resulting mixture is applied to a release film formed of afluororesin, and then shaped with a doctor blade into a sheet having athickness of 150 μm. The resulting sheet is cured at 150° C. for 8hours. A base member for a light-transmissive member is thus formed.

The base member for the light-transmissive member that has been cured isattached to the upper surface of a supporting member formed by bonding aheat-resistant UV sheet having adhesive layers on its both surfaces to aglass member that can transmit UV light.

The base member for the light-transmissive member is diced with a dicingsaw along the longitudinal and lateral directions to form a plurality ofgroove portions, thereby forming a plurality of projecting portions eachhaving the shape of the light-emitting portion of an intendedlight-emitting device.

At this time, the thickness of a light-reflective member of thelight-emitting device to be obtained is ensured by adjusting thethickness of the dicing blade to the sum of the thickness of thelight-reflective member after being cut and the thickness of a bladeused in the final dicing of the products. The sum is, for example, about200 μm.

A liquid resin material containing 2 wt % of Aerosil in a silicone resinis applied by dispensing to a plurality of separate portions on theupper surface of each of the projecting portions of thelight-transmissive member.

A light-emitting element, in which a light-transmissive sapphiresubstrate constituting the light-extracting surface, a semiconductorlayer, and electrodes are included, is disposed on the upper surface ofeach projecting portion of the light-transmissive member such that thesapphire substrate faces the upper surface of the light-transmissivemember. The dimensions of the light-emitting element is about 200 μm inwidth, about 800 μm in length, and about 150 μm in height. The liquidresin material is then cured to be changed into the light-transmissiveadhesive, and bonds the light-emitting element to the light-transmissivemember. At this time, the light-transmissive adhesive is disposedbetween lateral surfaces of adjacent light-emitting elements, and isformed into a shape broadening from the lower surface of eachlight-emitting element toward the light-transmissive member on endportions of the light-transmissive member in the width direction.

A silicone resin is mixed with 2 wt % of silica with an average particlediameter of 14 μm, and 60 wt % of titanium oxide with an averageparticle diameter of 0.3 μm as inorganic particles relative to theweight of the silicone resin to prepare a material for thelight-reflective member.

The light-reflective member is then shaped by compression molding with amold and cured to integrally cover all of the upper surfaces of thesupporting member, the projecting portions of the light-transmissivemember, the light-transmissive adhesive, and the light-emitting elementsdisposed thereon.

The base portion and part of the projecting portions of thelight-transmissive member and the light-reflective member are ground toexpose the projecting portions of the light-transmissive member from thelight-reflective member.

The light-reflective member is ground from the surface opposite to thelight-transmissive member to expose the electrodes.

The light-reflective member is cut by dicing on the basis of thepositions of the exposed electrodes of the light-emitting elements toprovide a plurality of light-emitting devices.

UV light is applied to the heat-resistant UV sheet through thesupporting member to weaken the adhesiveness of the adhesive layers ofthe sheet. The light-emitting devices are then removed from the UVsheet.

The light-emitting devices can be obtained by the above-mentionedmethod.

Example 2

A composition, which is a phosphor-containing sheet, is first providedin substantially the same or similar manner as in Example 1.

Subsequently, 2 wt % of Aerosil is added to a silicone resin, and theresulting mixture is mixed in a centrifugal defoaming mixer. Theresulting mixture is applied to a release film formed of a fluororesin,and then shaped with a doctor blade into a sheet having a thickness of150 μm to provide a transparent sheet.

Subsequently, the sheets are each semi-cured at 120° C. for 1 hour.

The semi-cured phosphor-containing sheet and transparent sheet are thenbonded to each other at 80° C. with a pressure of 0.5 MPa.

The bonded sheets are fully cured at 150° C. for 8 hours.

A base member 11 for a light-transmissive member with a thickness of 270μm including a phosphor-containing layer 11 a, which is thephosphor-containing sheet, and a phosphor-free layer 11 b, which is thetransparent sheet, is provided through the above-mentioned steps.

The base member 11 for the light-transmissive member is attached to asupporting member 50 including an adhesive layer 50 a, which is a UVsheet, in substantially the same or similar manner as in Example 1. Atthis time, the phosphor-free layer 11 b is bonded to the UV sheet.

Subsequently, the base member 11 for the light-transmissive member isdiced to form projecting portions 12. The height of a blade is adjustedso that 50 μm of the thickness of the phosphor-free layer 11 b remainsuncut. In other words, the base member 11 for the light-transmissivemember is cut into a shape that includes a base portion with a thicknessof 50 μm formed of the phosphor-free layer 11 b and the projectingportions 12 separated from one another above the base portion. Part ofthe phosphor-free layer 11 b on the surface in contact with thesupporting member 50 is not divided but is continuous. The projectingportions 12, in which the phosphor-free layer 12 b and thephosphor-containing layer 12 a are layered, each have a height of 220 μmfrom the upper surface of the base portion 13. This structure inhibitsor prevents the light-transmissive member 10 from being deformed by apressure during formation of a light-reflective member 4, and inhibitsor prevents the light-reflective member 4 from intruding the gap betweenthe supporting member 50 and the light-transmissive member 10 in thelater performed shaping step.

Subsequently, mounting of the light-emitting elements 2, forming of thelight-reflective member 4, and exposure of the electrodes 2 a and 2 b ofthe light-emitting elements 2 are performed in substantially the same orsimilar manner as in the first embodiment.

UV light is then radiated to the adhesive layer 50 a through thesupporting member 50 to weaken the adhesiveness of the layer 50 a, andthe base member 11 for the light-transmissive member is removed from thesupporting member 50 and transferred to another supporting memberincluding a UV sheet. At this time, transferring is performed such thatthe supporting member 50 is bonded to the surface of thelight-reflective member 4 on which the electrodes 2 a and 2 b of thelight-emitting elements 2 are exposed.

Subsequently, the base member 11 for the light-transmissive member isground to remove the base portion 13 of the light-transmissive member,part of the base member 41 for the light-reflective member 4, and partof the phosphor-free layer 12 b constituting the projecting portions 12.

The base member 41 for the light-reflective member is then cut by dicingon the basis of the positions of light-transmissive encapsulatingmembers 1 exposed.

UV light is radiated to the adhesive layer through a glass temporarysupporting member to cure the adhesive layer, and resultinglight-emitting devices 100 are removed from the supporting member.

By the above-mentioned method, the light-emitting devices 100 can beobtained, each of which the phosphor-free layer 11 b is disposed on theemitting surface side of the light-transmissive encapsulating member.

The phosphor-free portions 11 b and 12 b are removed when the baseportion 13 and projecting portions 12 of the light-transmissive memberare removed in this method, therefore, the thickness of thephosphor-containing portions 12 a does not vary due to the removal.Accordingly, variances in emission color of the light-emitting devices100 to be manufactured can be reduced. Also, the phosphor contained inthe phosphor-containing layer is protected because removal of thephosphor-free portion does not expose the phosphor-containing layer 12 aduring the removal. Removal of the phosphor-containing member isunnecessary, therefore, the required amount of the phosphor and thematerial costs can be reduced. The phosphor-free portion 1 b is disposedon the outer surface of the light-emitting device 100, thephosphor-containing layer 1 a can be protected.

Example 3

In the present example, the light-emitting device 300 shown in FIG. 13Ato FIG. 13E is manufactured. The upper surface of a projecting portionof a light-transmissive member used for manufacturing the light-emittingdevice 300 has a length L5 in the width direction of about 300 and alength L4 in the longitudinal direction of about 49,500 μm in a planview, and the height of the upper surface is about 120 μm from the uppersurface of a base portion of the light-transmissive member. On theprojecting portion of the light-transmissive member, thirty three piecesof light-emitting elements 302 each having dimensions of 200 μm inwidth, 1,000 μm in length, and 150 μm in height are disposed atintervals of 500 μm. A light-transmissive adhesive 303 is disposedcontinuously between the light-emitting elements 302. Other than theabove-mentioned steps, the light-emitting device is manufactured insubstantially the same or similar manner as in Example 2. The linearlight-emitting device that is long in the longitudinal direction asshown in FIG. 13A to FIG. 13E is thus easily manufactured. Thelight-emitting device 300 shown in FIGS. 13A to 13E includes: thelight-emitting elements 302 each having the longitudinal direction sideand the width direction side in a plan view; a light-transmissiveencapsulating member 301 having the longitudinal direction side and thewidth direction side in a plan view; a light-transmissive adhesive 303that bonds the light-emitting elements 302 to the light-transmissiveencapsulating member 301; and a light-reflective member 304 that coversthe lateral surfaces of the light-emitting elements 302, thelight-transmissive adhesive 303, and the lateral surfaces of thelight-transmissive encapsulating member 301. The light-emitting elements302 are aligned such that their longitudinal directions sides coincidewith the longitudinal direction side of the light-transmissive member301, and the light-transmissive adhesive 303 is disposed between lateralsurfaces of the adjacent light-emitting elements 302.

The light-emitting device 300 can be suitably used as a light source foran end-face-incident backlight. Regarding an electronic apparatusincluding a display in which a light-emitting device is used as a lightsource for a backlight apparatus, the need for slimming down the bezelof a display panel (i.e., expanding the effective area of the screenwithin the panel) is increasing recently to increase the proportion ofthe display area to the size of the surface including the display area.However, in the case where a light-emitting device, in which a pluralityof light-emitting elements are aligned, is used as the light-emittingdevice as the light source for the backlight apparatus, the intensityand color of light emitted from the light-emitting device depend on theangle. Non-uniformity in brightness and color is therefore large in thevicinity of the light-emitting device, and the light-emitting device isnot suitable for the display area. Hence, there has been a problem inthat a certain range from the light-emitting device 300 cannot be usedas the display area, that is, expansion of the display area isdifficult.

The structure of the light-emitting device 300 obtained in the presentexample, however, allows light emitted from the light-emitting elements302 to be uniformized within the light-transmissive adhesive 303disposed between the light-emitting elements 302 before entering thelight-transmissive encapsulating member 301, so that the light isemitted substantially uniformly from the surface of thelight-transmissive encapsulating member 301. This structure reduces thedependence of the intensity or color of light emitted from thelight-emitting device 300 on the angle and enables the light-emittingdevice 300 to be disposed near the light-guiding plate of the backlightapparatus. The frame of the backlight apparatus can be therefore slimmeddown, and the display area of the backlight apparatus can be expanded.Accordingly, a display (i.e., lighting apparatus) 390 as shown in FIG.14, in which the light-emitting device 300 in the present example canhave an expanded display area.

Example 4

In the present example, the upper surface of a projecting portion of alight-transmissive member has a substantially square shape of 1,100μm×1,100 μm dimensions. A substantially square light-emitting element402 having 1,000 μm×1,000 μm dimensions is disposed on the projectingportion. Other than the above-mentioned steps, a light-emitting deviceis manufactured in substantially the same or similar manner as inExample 2. The light-emitting device 400 as shown in FIG. 15A and FIG.15B is thus easily manufactured. The light-emitting device 400 is smalland is thus suitably used for a flash for a camera in a smartphone, or aplurality of such light-emitting devices arranged in a matrix issuitably used for a direct-lit backlight, for example.

Several embodiments and examples according to the present invention havebeen illustrated above, but the present invention is not limited to theabove-mentioned embodiments or examples. Needless to say, anymodifications are possible within the scope of the present invention.

The light-emitting devices disclosed in the present specification may beeach used as a top-view light-emitting device, in which thelight-emitting device is mounted such that its emitting surface faces inthe direction opposite to the mounting board, or as a side-viewlight-emitting device, in which the light-emitting device is mountedsuch that the plane of its emitting surface extending in a directionintersecting with, preferably substantially perpendicularly to, themounting surface.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for manufacturing a light-emittingdevice, the method comprising: providing a base member for alight-transmissive member; providing a light-emitting element that has amain emitting surface and an electrode formation surface opposite to themain emitting surface; disposing the light-emitting element on the basemember such that the main emitting surface of the light-emitting elementfaces a first surface of the base member; forming a lighttransmissive-member comprising a base portion and a projecting portionabove the base portion by forming at least one depressed portion in thebase member, such that the light-emitting element is disposed on theprojecting portion; and forming a light-reflective member that coverslateral surfaces of the light-emitting element and lateral surfaces ofthe projecting portion of the light-transmissive member.
 2. The methodfor manufacturing a light-emitting device according to claim 1, whereinthe step of forming the light-transmissive member is performed such thatthe light-transmissive member comprises a plurality of projectingportions connected to each other via the base portion; and wherein themethod further comprises: removing the base portion of thelight-transmissive member, and cutting the light-reflective memberbetween the plurality of projecting portions.
 3. The method formanufacturing a light-emitting device according to claim 2, wherein, inthe step of removing the base portion of the light-transmissive member,part of the projecting portions of the light-transmissive member andpart of the light-reflective member are also removed.
 4. The method formanufacturing a light-emitting device according to claim 1, wherein thestep of providing a light-emitting element comprises providing aplurality of light-emitting elements, each having a main emittingsurface and an electrode formation surface opposite to the main emittingsurface; wherein the step of forming the light-transmissive member isperformed such that at least two of the light-emitting elements aredisposed on the projecting portion.
 5. The method for manufacturing alight-emitting device according to claim 1, wherein the base membercomprises a layered structure that includes: a phosphor-containingportion, and a phosphor-free portion comprising substantially nophosphor particles; and wherein the step of forming thelight-transmissive member comprises forming the projecting portion byforming the at least one depressed portion in the phosphor-containingportion.
 6. The method for manufacturing a light-emitting deviceaccording to claim 5, further comprising removing the base portion ofthe light-transmissive member, which removes the phosphor-free portion.7. The method for manufacturing a light-emitting device according toclaim 1, wherein, in the step of disposing the light-emitting element onthe base member, the light-emitting element is disposed on the basemember with a light-transmissive adhesive disposed therebetween.
 8. Themethod for manufacturing a light-emitting device according to claim 7,wherein the step of providing a light-emitting element comprisesproviding a plurality of light-emitting elements, each having a mainemitting surface and an electrode formation surface opposite to the mainemitting surface; wherein the step of forming the light-transmissivemember is performed such that at least two of the light-emittingelements are disposed on the projecting portion; and wherein thelight-transmissive adhesive connects at least a part of lateral surfacesof the at least two light-emitting elements.